It also follows the tumultuous 2020 presidential elections, which saw 1 an explosion in problematic content and prompted Meta to create an entirely new label for content that delegitimized the outcome of the election or discussed the validity of voting methods, of whi. [...] It stands as a formidable barrier to the preservation of electoral integrity and the information ecosystem, which Meta has repeatedly purported to care deeply about.6 The work of independent research- ers and civil society organizations should be valuable to Meta as additional capacity to bolster these efforts – but the closure of CrowdTangle, despite calls from the pub- lic to preserve and expand. [...] While Meta has touted the launch of the Meta Content Library10 for its access to all public content and the inclusion of Reels and Events, we are very concerned about the restrictive nature of accessing and using data in the Meta Content Library11, as well as the overall usability, including: ■ More restrictive data retention policies and export rules: In general, the Meta Content Library has much. [...] At the moment, the Meta Content Library interface is limited to searching for posts; CrowdTangle offers multiple interfaces, including the ability to conduct research at an account-level, see trends over time and more.13 For instance, CrowdTangle’s Intelligence interface makes it possible for researchers to see the growth of an account (or groups of accounts) over time. [...] Furthermore, the Meta Content Library does not link to individual Facebook posts in results of searches, limiting the ability of researchers to explore that content within the interface.15 3 ■ Exclusion of the for-profit news industry: The lack of access for for-profit newsrooms16 will hinder the ability of most newsrooms to have access to real- time data about what’s happening on Facebook and Ins.
- Pages
- 7
- Published in
- United States of America
